What You Don't Realize
by Lady Keruri
Summary: Naruto set in a high school setting! Sakura has a crush on the hottest and most popular guy in school. Naruto, the nerd, is in love with Sakura. So who gets who? NaruSaku, SakuSasu, among other couples. Rating for possible themes.
1. This Day Shall Sucketh

Haruno Sakura was pissed.

This day was _supposed _to work out perfectly, _supposed _to play right into her hands. Or so her friends Ino and Hinata had told her.

Hinata and Ino; the_ pretty_girls in the school. Ino had her gorgeous blonde hair and slender body, and Hinata was adorable and shy, along with her enormous... well...

She'd conditioned and styled her hair perfectly that morning, put on the perfect amount of makeup, picked the perfect outfit--the one that subtly accentuated what curves she had. She'd even put on her favorite pair of earrings and pulled out her expensive Coach purse. Uchiha Sasuke should have at least given her a second glance.

But he didn't.

And that hurt her feelings. And whenever her feelings got hurt, she became cranky.

But her feelings weren't just hurt, her heart was crushed, smashed, shattered. Her confident offer for a date was not only turned down by the bastard, it was turned around and spat back at her with vicious force.

So much for going for the good-looking, mysterious type. He was just too cool for her, or so her friends had said.

She replayed the events in her head, making her even more miserable than she already was.

_Sakura tapped her pencil impatiently, watching the clock above the teacher's head and waiting for the bell that seemed to taunt her with its slow approach._

_Her attention was drawn away when she felt a pair of eyes boring into her. She turned her head to look at the next row of desks and caught a rather nerdy-looking boy staring at her. He was a little on the skinny side, with crazy blonde tresses that looked as if they'd never be tame. He was wearing a pair of dark-rimmed glasses that framed bright, cerulean eyes--eyes that could have been pretty if he wasn't wearing the glasses. An old, faded black _Iron Maiden_ shirt, a pair of patched and darned jeans, and what used to be white sneakers but were now a sad shade of gray were the defining presence of "nerdiness"._

_When he saw her look back at him, he blinked and smiled weakly before dropping his gaze and pretending to take notes from the teacher's droning voice._

_But before Sakura could give him a second thought, the bell finally rang. She snatched up her backpack and made her way towards the cafeteria, moving so quickly that the rest of the class tailed behind her._

_When she entered the lunchroom, her eyes roved to find the one person she was trying to impress: the all-famous, popular and major hottie Uchiha Sasuke. He was easily recognizable as the boy on the other side of the room, surrounded by fangirls and other popular guys. He leaned with easy grace on the white brick wall, one leg up and the flat of his foot against the wall._

_Sakura dropped her bag into her usual seat, where she and her friends--Ino, Hinata, and Neji--sat. It was an unsaid thing that thier seats were reserved, as they were seniors._

_She casually "happened" to walk past Sasuke, making sure that she added a little confident stride in her step and attempting to swing her hips a little as well. She made her way through the throng of adoring fans--none of which seemed to make any impression on Sasuke--and boldly stood in front of him, hoping she looked "natural"._

_The many fangirls watched her progress with disdain in their eyes--she could feel them sizing her up as an opponent or an enemy._

_"So, Sasuke-kun," she said, hoping her makeup had lasted throughout the day, "I hear you're still single."_

_A nearly imperceptible nod was her answer, which was his trademark--he never talked much, adding to his "mysterious and dark" demeanor._

_"I..." her confidence faltered a little. Couldn't he at least look at her when she was speaking to him? She cleared her throat. "I wanted to know if you were interested in a date," she finished, lifting her chin a little in what she hoped was a show of confidence, even though her heart was thundering._

_She got her wish, if only for a second; he glanced at her before dropping his gaze and pulling a piece of gum out of his pocket. He didn't answer her at first, and made a show of unwrapping his Wrigley's and slowly pushing it into his mouth, chewing and softening it for a moment. She couldn't help but watch the movement of his hands as it led to his yummy lips, but she mentally shook herself and continued to wait for an answer. _

_"You were pretty brave to just walk up here and ask me for a date," he said, still not looking at her and keeping his arms crossed. Sakura's confidence lifted... was he...? Then he looked at her, straight in the face. Sakura noted the gorgeous onyx color before she saw lazy indifference in his eyes. "But I'm not interested. Nor will I ever be. I don't associate with losers," he said sniffily, before turning away and blatantly ignored her. _

_Several things happened at once: a million emotions threatened to make Sakura explode, but instead turned her face a blotchy pink color, the girls around Sasuke smirked and turned their backs on her, and a voice shouted unintelligible words from behind her as a warm hand pulled her away from the crowd. She was vaguely aware that she'd been brought back to her table with all of her friends. _

_But even through the clamor of Sasuke's groupies sneering and the yelling voice, one thing registered in her brain: _**try harder**.

_She later learned that it was Tenten that had shouted at Uchiha and called him a "stupid, cold prick" and it was Neji who'd dragged her back to the table._

A voice suddenly brought her back to the present. She stopped chewing on her pencil to see her teacher looking at her, half-bemused, half-concerned, along with the rest of the entire class.

"Miss Haruno, the answer to number thirty-two...?" The teacher asked, waiting for her answer.

"Oh! Um... sorry, Kakashi-sensei... " She stammered, blushing as the rest of the class sniggered.

Except one.

The nerdy, blonde boy was looking at her with genuine concern, and a little bit of something else... sadness? Jealousy?

She turned to her book and gave the answer.


	2. Deal

To Uzumaki Naruto, she was the most gorgeous girl in the entire school.

Her hair, which matched her name, was flowy and silky and perfect and made him want to run his fingers through it.

Her face, so perfectly round and beautiful, made him want to touch it.

Her lips were so perfectly kissable, full and smooth.

Her pale, silky skin made him want to taste it.

Her beautiful curves and graceful, fluid strength made him want to hold her close to him.

Her dazzling smile always brightened his day.

Her gorgeous jade eyes captivated him.

But it was her attitude towards life, her enthusiasm and endearing innocent qualities, not to mention her short temper and the way she pouted every time someone made her upset that made him fall in love with her long before she'd ever grown into a beautiful young woman, back when he was little.

He hadn't understood that feeling yet; all he knew was, back in Wingard-sensei's kindergarten class, he thought she was an angel.

And she'd actually _looked _at him, twice!

It was just one of those unattainable things in life for a nerd, he supposed. Besides, she practically worshipped that Uchiha jerk. That didn't mean he couldn't look at her, watching her bite her lip when she was thinking in class, watching her laugh and have fun with her friends. She was lucky.

She had friends.

She also didn't know he existed. He'd been in every class with her (he'd stubbornly refused to be in any other classes) and she still never noticed he was there. He supposed it was partially his fault; after all, he never got up the courage to talk to the girl.

When he watched that scene in the lunchroom, watched Sasuke practically crush her to bits, he saw red. Not wanting to start another fight with the guys, knowing they'd probably kick his ass, he simply settled for gritting his teeth and clenching his fists so hard that his nails dug little holes into his palms. He stormed out of the cafeteria and into the library, knocking over some bewildered-looking freshmen on the way by.

He now stared in the mirror in the boy's room, taking in his slightly overwhelming appearance. His hair was shaggy but spiky at the same time, his face a little too round, his eyes a little too blue. His glasses pretty much dominated his face, the black rims screaming "dork!". He bared his teeth at himself and noticed that, although they were clean and free of yellowishness, they weren't movie-star white like all the girls swooned over. He pouted, sticking out his bottom lip.

Sakura would never like him. He was too annoying, too easy to ignore. He was too alone.

"Ah, Uzumaki... why are you still here?" asked a voice, and Naruto turned to see a boy with flaming red hair, pale, almost porcelain skin, and black eyeliner around his eyes. Gaara, the "scary" goth man, then.

"What do you want?" Naruto muttered half-heartedly. The corners of Gaara's lips twitched and he thumbed the black gloves with the fingers cut off messily, stylishly. Naruto wished he had _some _kind of style; at least Gaara's was consistent.

"Is that any way to greet a friend?" Gaara asked silkily, crossing his arms and leaning artfully against the stone wall.

"I never realized we were friends," Naruto shot back, quickly becoming irritated. Gaara's emerald eyes glittered dangerously for a moment before he continued.

"You want Haruno Sakura," he said. It wasn't a questioning tone. It was more like a threat.

"So?" Naruto snapped.

"She wants Uchiha."

"Yeah, I know that," Naruto said, but a little more softly, dropping his gaze an inch.

"You need help."

Naruto perked up a little.

"Yeah..."

"...and I need something," Gaara finished, watching Naruto shrewdly.

Naruto pursed his lips suspiciously. "What do you want?" Naruto asked again, more slowly.

Gaara told him.

"Do we have a deal?" he asked, extending a rough, gloved hand. Naruto's eyes narrowed for a moment before accepting the hand.

"Fine..."

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

_I can't believe this. _

Sakura lay on her belly, chin buried in her favorite rainbow-unicorn pillow and her bottom lip pushed out. A trail of discarded clothes followed her: in backward order, her jeans, her pink belt, her socks, her flat white sneakers. Her earrings lay on her nightstand beside her.

_I can't believe he rejected me._

"Sakura, honey? Can I come in...?" came a voice behind Sakura.

"Sure, Mom," Sakura answered, too mopey to get up and face her.

"Hey..." Her mother sat on the bed beside her, causing the cushioning to lean to the side. Mrs. Haruno sighed. "Something happened."

"Yeah..." Sakura took a deep breath and finally sat up. Her mom was one of those people you could talk to and not worry about later consequences, so she sighed and prepared herself to tell the story all over again.

When she was done, Mrs. Haruno didn't say anything. She simply leaned over and hugged her daughter, her sweet, young girl who was still learning to be a woman.

"Sakura... you know you're beautiful, right?"

Sakura didn't answer for a moment, her throat too constricted from her mother's warm embrace. "Y-yeah..."

Mrs. Haruno pulled away. "I'll make some cookies... peanut butter sound good?"

Sakura's bottom lip quivered; it was cute and slightly pitiful at the same time. She could have been okay if her mom wasn't so nice... when Sakura was sad, it was harder not to cry when somebody was nice to her. She never knew why; it was just another of her many, many quirks.

"Yeah, Mom, that sounds great..."

Mrs. Haruno turned and left her daughter to some needed solitude.

_I'll just have to try harder, _Sakura thought with a little, pitiful sniff.


	3. I Don't Want to Be Right

"Why am I doing this again?" Naruto muttered, more to himself than the annoying goth girl standing with him.

A week had passed since the little incident between Sakura and Sasuke in the lunchroom: the exaggerated stories had finally died down.

"For Sakura-chan, of course!" squealed Temari. She wore too many colored jelly bracelets to count, a little, cut-up plaid miniskirt, multiple layers of band shirts, and obnoxious pink socks that peeked over the tops of her combat boots.

Naruto grumbled under his breath, but said nothing more.

Apparently, Gaara was the messenger and mastermind, but not the little pawn that did his own work. So he sent the annoying little blonde with too many pigtails. Great.

Although she wasn't _always _annoying; she was tough and sometimes nice. Naruto supposed he could have been friends with her.

"Now, we need to get that letter from that goofy-looking guy over there," she whispered, pointing at one of the ugliest guys Naruto had ever seen.

He was tall, gawky, with too-dark eyelashes, a bowl cut, and big, thick eyebrows that danced like caterpillars above his girly eyes. He also wore a tight green shirt and baggy pants, accentuating the scrawniness of his body. Naruto raised his eyebrows at her.

"Gaara wants something from_ this _guy?" Naruto whispered disbelievingly. Temari didn't answer.

"Okay, now when he leaves his locker... _go!_"

Naruto blinked, dumbfounded for a moment, until Temari kicked him. Hard.

"OW!" He screeched, and the entire hallway went quiet for a moment to stare. Naruto chuckled nervously, hand rubbing the back of his head. After a second or two, the hall was abuzz with chatter again as if nothing had happened. Temari rolled her eyes behind the corner.

"What an idiot," she muttered under her breath. She walked away and headed back towards the courtyard, where her boyfriend was waiting.

Naruto walked over to the guy, trying to figure out how to approach.

"Uh... hey," Naruto said awkwardly, shuffling his feet. Jeez, he felt like he was asking some girl on a date.

The boy nodded solemnly, fixing Naruto with a strange stare. Naruto decided that he didn't like this guy that much.

"I, uh... well, I haven't seen ya around the school, much... thought I'd introduce... myself," Naruto said, a little lamely. However, the boy's face seemed to light up.

"Hello, new friend! I am Rock Lee of the Rock family! I am pleased to meet you, ...?" Lee stuck out his hand and shook Naruto's vigorously, leaving the blonde a little embarassed.

"Uh...Naruto... Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto finished, wanting to get this 'mission' over with as soon as possible. A white little square of paper sticking out of Lee's jeans pocket caught his eye.

"Uhh... well, w-whatcha got there?" Naruto asked with forced curiosity, pointing.

"Aahhh... _this_?" Lee asked, pulling out the letter out with relish. "It is an important message I must get to a girl... it was just sitting in my locker, but it has some important information for..." he opened the letter, reading who it was for. "A girl named Temari," Lee finished. Naruto's eyes widened.

"O-oh? What's it about?"

Lee blinked and folded the letter back up. "Her boyfriend was seen doing most... ah... _immoral_ things... with another girl."

"Who's h-her boyfriend, again?" Naruto asked, now truly curious.

"That scary guy with the eyeliner, what's-his-name..."

"Gaara?" Naruto countered.

"Yes! That boy," Lee said. He suddenly frowned. "I guess he's not a really nice person..."

Naruto's brain was buzzing with this information. He now had a choice: Sakura, or the right thing? Temari had a right to know what that letter said, true or not... and how would Gaara know about this letter, and, furthermore, why would he hide it? And why did he send Naruto? But he would lose his chance to get Sakura... and Gaara was probably capable of murder, or threats, or something creepy like that...

_I knew that something was wrong with that guy, _Naruto thought fervently. He furrowed his brow in thought.

He made his decision.

"Hey, uh, Lee... I know this girl, Temari... let me deliver it to her..."

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Sakura awoke early that morning, renewed with large amounts of energy and new confidence. She jumped when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

Keeping her eyes on the road, the fumbled with her right hand for the cell phone and flipped it open.

"Hello?"

"Hey, girl!" came Ino's voice.

"Oh, hey, Ino."

"So... you feelin' it today?"

Sakura smiled. "Yeah, I am..."

Ino huffed, the sound coming through the phone like a rush of static. "I still don't believe you want to go after that jerk _again..._"

Sakura frowned. "He's not a jerk, he's just..."

"A prick?"

"No!" Sakura yelled, half-irritated, half-amused. "He's with the cool crowd, and I'm not... he has to keep up his image, I suppose..."

"So you're going to change who you are and grovel at his feet?" Ino retorted sarcastically. Sakura could almost see her rolling her baby-blue eyes. "He's hot, I'll admit that, but he's a cold fish, no heart," Ino said.

"I'm almost at the school," Sakura said abruptly, a little annoyed at her friend for insulting her crush. "I'll talk to you then."

She snapped the phone shut, sulking behind the wheel.

_He just has issues, that's all, _Sakura reasoned. _After all, his brother did go all loony and kill their parents... and is loose somewhere in the country..._

Sakura shuddered, trying to imagine the situation. She supposed she would try to forget... but Sasuke couldn't seem to. He was always absent on the anniversary of his parents' deaths.

_He probably needs someone he can talk to, to trust... I wish _I _could be that person..._

Her musings lingered in her head as she entered the school, remembering that she was to continue to try to lure Uchiha Sasuke out of his hiding place.


	4. Decisions

**Hello! **

**This is Lady Keruri, at your service! bows**

**I am here to write cute leetle stories for joo! Anyway, I'm totally pulling this story out of my butt. So...**

**Review please! **

**/hugs**

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"No."

Sakura raised her eyebrows. "But Sasuke-kun, I haven't said anything..."

"But I know what you are going to say," Sasuke said haughtily, making it clear that Sakura was annoying him. The girls around him leered threateningly.

Sakura put her hands on her hips. "You have no idea what I'm going to say, Uchiha!" Sasuke spared her a suprised glance and she was sent back into sputtering silence.

"No doubt it was about some date," he said, almost sarcastically.

"Well, a-actually, it was... you see, I'm going to turn eighteen in a few weeks, and me and my friends are going to my first club... and, seeing as you're already eighteen..."

"You want me to go?"

Sakura's breath hitched. "No! W-well, of course, but it was more of an invitation for you _and _your... friends," she said, looking at the nearest girl and forcing the last word out.

Sasuke looked at her, the slightest amount of surprise showing in his flat, onyx eyes. "Well... it seems you're not a _complete _loser after all..." his eyes flicked to the left of him, where one of his guy friends stood smoking a cigarette. "You guys wanna go? Kiba?"

The boy dropped the cigarette and stomped on it. He ruffled his already crazily spiked hair and nodded, as if uninterested.

"All right... Sakura, was it...? We'll see you there."

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_"I've loved you all along, Naruto-kun..."_

_Sakura looked deep into his eyes, emeralds meeting sapphires._

_Naruto didn't answer, but brought his hand up to her cheek, and she leaned into his touch, sighing._

_"Sakura-chan... I've waited a long time to hear you say that..."_

_And he held her closer, wrapping his arms around her small waist as she put hers around his neck, and she looked up at him, warmth seeping into her gaze as well as her skin. _

_Their faces were millimeters apart... he could feel her sweet-smelling breath on his lips..._

"Uzumaki!" Naruto's head snapped up; he'd been daydreaming, yet again, about the girl of his dreams.

"Y-yes, Jiraiya-sensei...?"

The energetic old man's face was scrunched in annoyance. "Uzumaki Naruto, you need to pay attention! I don't want you to struggle in this class... again..."

It was common knowledge that Naruto hated science classes, and the fact that he'd already failed biology once was proof of that.

The other students sniggered cruelly. But not, he thought, heart leaping a little, Sakura, who was too busy staring at Sasuke and chewing on her pencil. Jiraiya left his place in front of Naruto's desk and continued his lecture. Naruto went back to pretending to write notes.

However, a miniature skirmish was exploding inside his head:

Should he, or shouldn't he, give that note to Gaara?

He'd always done the right thing; but this decision just seemed so hard. Sakura, or his own morals?

Besides, was it any of his business what went on in Gaara's personal life? And how did he know that the letter was true?

It gave him a headache. He rubbed his temples, sparing a glance at Sakura. She was still nibbling on the end of her eraser, now listening to Jiraiya drone on and on about the difference between meiosis and mitosis. That little habit made him want to kiss her more than anything... she was so cute and beautiful and wonderful...

His thoughts were interrupted as, once again, he heard his name escape the white-haired sensei's mouth.

"Uzumaki, you are grouped with Miss Haruno and Mr. Uchiha," Jiraiya said, pointing at each student. Naruto's brain whooped in joy.

"Okay!" he shouted, with a little too much enthusiasm. Jiraiya winced. Naruto scooted over to Sakura. She looked at him for a second before greeting him with a smile.

"Hi," she said amiably. "I'm Sakura."

Naruto felt suddenly extremely nervous. He broke out in a cold sweat and his breath came in shorter gasps. He could also feel his cheeks warm up with the blush that probably covered them.

"I know," Naruto said quietly. "I've b-been in your class s-since kindergarten..."

Sakura looked a little taken aback, then sheepish. "Oh! Um... I, uh, forgot your name..."

"Uzumaki N-Naruto," he stammered. She smiled brightly.

Then Sasuke had to walk up to them, dragging his desk noisily behind him. He nodded once at Sakura and completely ignored Naruto.

"S-Sasuke-kun! Hi!" Sakura's face broke out in a rosy blush, eyes sparkling adoringly. Naruto frowned. "Sasuke, this is Naruto..." she said politely. Naruto grinned a little stupidly at her acknowledgement.

But Sasuke didn't look at him or Sakura. He simply slumped in his chair and scowled, making a pointed message: _I don't want to be here with any of you people._

Naruto was about to open his mouth to say something about Sasuke's rudeness, but he caught the confused and slightly hurt expression on Sakura's face and he forgot how to speak. He turned away and awaited the sensei's instructions.

He couldn't concentrate the remainder of the class; he was too busy feeling elated and disappointed that Sakura was in his group, but would always like Sasuke better.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

The end of the day was punctuated by the ring of the long-awaited-for school bell. Naruto trudged out of his history class with Tsunade-sensei, the beautiful blonde teacher that always seemed to be the center of all the boys' attention. Except Naruto's, of course.

He trudged heavily to the spot where Gaara was supposed to wait for him, letter in hand.

A sudden thought occurred to him; he could turn back, give the letter to Temari. He actually stopped, his feet firmly rooting him to the spot.

Sakura... or his gut feeling?

He didn't have time to sort this all out, however, as the object of his daydreams stood in front of him.

"Naruto?" He looked up a little too quickly, making him feel a little dazed. Sakura smiled with the air of being polite. _Always the lady, I guess, _Naruto thought, feeling, again, that this girl could not possibly be more perfect.

"Hey, I just wanted to say that I'll have a lot of fun in our science labs with you... you seem like a nice person," she said, a light, friendly tone accenting her voice.

_She...she thinks I'm nice...? _His face must have looked a little spacey, because she waved her hand in front of him. "You okay?" she asked.

"Oh! Uh... yeah, I'm fine, Sakura-chan... I can't wait to see ya tomorrow!" Naruto said, his voice a little higher than usual. Sakura waved and walked to where she had parked that morning.

When Naruto looked down, he saw that his hands were shaking violently. Gaara's sudden appearance didn't help, either.

"I'll take that," Gaara said, snatching the letter away from Naruto. Naruto made a weak attempt at trying to grab it back, his resolve crumbling slightly after meeting with Sakura.

Gaara chuckled. "Thought you might have second thoughts, Uzumaki... you seem to be the goody-two-shoes type..."

"I know what that letter says," Naruto muttered darkly, glaring. "Did that really happen...?"

Gaara didn't say anything for a moment, eyes lingering on Naruto's. "I'm not Temari's boyfriend," he stated flatly. Naruto narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"But, Lee said..."

"It was a rumor, spread by stupid teenagers..." Gaara said softly. He tucked the letter in one of his many pockets of his black pants. "I'm not interested in... commitments... of that sort," he said.

"Why would people say...?" Naruto did not finish the question, because Gaara's expression seemed to harden. Naruto mentally shuddered. _This guy is kinda scary..._

"I am attempting to... destroy evidence of these rumors... or others that may mar my image," Gaara finished, as if Naruto hadn't said anything. "Temari is merely an acquaintance, nothing more."

"Then, who's her boyfriend?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Kankuro."

Naruto furrowed his brow. "Oh, isn't that the guy who's obsessed with creepy clowns?"

Gaara nodded, but didn't say anything else.

"So... will you help me...?" Naruto asked cautiously. He wanted Gaara to keep his end of the bargain, as well.

"_I'm _not going to help you," Gaara said, as if the task was far below him. "Temari will."

Naruto supposed that made sense; after all, she was, well, a girl, and Gaara just didn't seem the type for romantic advice.

"She'll meet you at the lockers tomorrow morning."

The conversation was apparently at an end, because Gaara walked away.

Naruto stood there for a moment, attempting to swallow all of the new information. He turned around and walked towards his own little apartment.


	5. Make New Friends, Keep the Old

**Hi!**

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**Thank you guys for your reviews! It makes me sooooo happy to even get one, let alone eight at almost the same time!**

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**On with the show!**

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Sakura couldn't believe her luck--of all people to be with her in her group for the science lab, she had gotten Uchiha Sasuke.

She could have died and gone to heaven; the super-major hottie was in _her _group!

However, she couldn't act too ecstatic; he'd think she was just some crazy, obsessed fangirl wanting to get into his pants like the rest of the female--and some male--population at Konoha High. So she sat coolly and calmly, waiting to greet him until he actually sat with her.

But before Sasuke could make his way to the table, a slightly bouncy boy scooted his desk over to her with much enthusiasm. She noted that this was the same boy staring at her the other day, but she'd forgotten about him until just then. His cheeks were flushed an adorable pink color and he seemed a little breathless. Wanting to make a good impression, she smiled politely and introduced herself.

"I-I know... I've been in your class since k-kindergarten..." he'd stuttered quietly, surprising Sakura. She'd felt a little guilty then; surely she should have seen him...? Then she remembered; she'd always had a little blonde kid in her class, but she'd never really acknowledged him. Feeling sheepish, she distracted herself with the arrival of Sasuke.

Her heart jumped a little and she could feel her skin grow a little warm. She introduced Naruto to Sasuke, only to be ignored. Her good mood deflated a little, which kept her mind stirring with little sad thoughts and hopeful daydreams that Sasuke would finally notice her.

Little did she know that her blonde lab partner was thinking the same thing about her.

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"So... what you're telling me is that I have to pretend that I _don't _like her?" Naruto asked skeptically. Temari had given him a mini-makeover, making him look at least a tad better. She'd forbade him to wear his glasses except when reading, forced him to wear a vertically striped, long-sleeved button-down shirt over his typical black band shirt, traded his old, ugly sneakers for Vans, and had styled his hair in an "I just woke up and got out of bed but I look like I did it on purpose" sort of look. This had all taken about five minutes before the first bell rang that morning.

Temari rolled her eyes. Naruto wondered if they'd stick that way, she did it so often.

"No! What I mean is, be nice, but in a friendly way. Don't be clingy, don't be needy, and don't profess your love to her! Well, not right away, anyway," she said, adding the last statement in a dreamy voice. Her boyfriend, Kankuro, snorted.

She turned on him with an annoyed look. "Come to think of it, why didn't _you _ever do that?" she asked, swatting Kankuro's upper arm playfully. Kankuro shrugged.

Naruto rolled his eyes, but stopped himself halfway. Temari was starting to wear off on him. "You were going to tell me what to say...?" he said when the couple got a little too close for his comfort.

"Wha...? Oh, yeah! You just need to say nice things to her, like... oh, her outfit compliments her eyes, or her hair looks nice in a certain style... but don't say anything about her actual body, it will sound either cheesy or that you're coming on to her. Also, don't forget to invite her somewhere... but not alone! Make sure you have friends with you wherever you take her," Temari said, ticking the things off on her fingers.

Naruto mumbled something inaudible, suddenly looking a little pitiful.

"What was that, Naruto?"

He suddenly found the ground very interesting. "I... don't really have any... friends..." he mumbled almost inaudibly. He looked up at Temari, expecting her to laugh, but instead he found her smiling.

"Sure ya do! Me and Kankuro'll go wherever, and I'm sure Gothy Gaara'll go if I annoy him enough," she said cheerfully. Naruto looked at her in disbelief.

"You... wanna be my friends?" He asked incredulously, hardly believing his ears.

"Well... yeah," Kankuro said sarcastically, speaking for the first time. His voice was somewhat deep and rumbly.

Naruto's lower lip trembled for a moment before he pounced on Temari and Kankuro, bringing them into a bone-cracking hug. "Thanks, guys!" he said loudly. He then turned around and ran to class, his step full of bounce.

Kankuro, a little surprised at being hugged so spontaneously by another guy, looked at Temari. "Why didn't he have friends before?"

Temari shrugged. "I dunno, he seems like a likeable enough guy..."

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The rest of the week was like some sort of roller coaster ride for Sakura. While she enjoyed being near Sasuke, it was a little depressing to be constantly ignored or rejected. On the other hand, she was thoroughly enjoying the company of the blonde boy who, it seemed, was very sweet. He would pull her chair up for her and always had something nice to say about how she looked. He also seemed to notice whenever she was feeling down; the bright smile he usually gave her would not reach his eyes when he knew she was unhappy about something. Unlike Neji and the others, however, he would leave her alone about it.

She also noticed that he'd changed something about the way he looked; his fashion choices in his daily wear didn't look so... dorky. But the biggest change she noticed was that he didn't wear his glasses so often anymore. His sparkling blue eyes were no longer hidden, and she could see everything he felt in them.

But he would also act... strangely around her, as if he wanted to say something to her but didn't.

However, though the changes in Naruto were pleasantly surprising, her attitude towards him didn't go any farther than friendly chatter. Her attention was solely for Sasuke.

It was one day in her biology class that finally got her mood lifted for more than a week.

"All right, guys, I've got an important announcement..." Jiraiya's voice floated across the room, causing the buzz of chatter to die down slowly. "See the people you're sitting with? Your group? You're gonna be with them all year," he said, and a mixture of 'yeah!'s and grumbling was heard. Sakura spared a glance at Sasuke; he seemed unmoved except for the little scowl that marred his features.

The bell rang, signifying the end of that period. Sakura gathered her things, silently whooping with joy. Naruto faced her before she left.

"All right, Sakura-chan! We get to see each other ALL YEAR!" Sakura winced inwardly at his lack of inhibition, although she thought it was nice to be around someone so infectiously happy.

"Yeah, and I can be with..." she stopped herself and her eyes darted in the direction of Sasuke's retreating back. She smiled dreamily. "Well, I'll see you around, Naruto..." she said, walking out of the classroom.

As soon as she stepped into the hallway, she was bombarded by her girlfriends.

"So... any progress on the hottie?" Ino asked immediately. Sakura ignored the bluntness and sighed.

"No..."

Ino and Hinata seemed to deflate.

"You need to talk to him, girl! Tell him that he'd better date you or you'll never stop pestering him for autographs, or something..." Typical Ino; her suggestion always seemed to match her tactics for getting whatever she wanted--annoy them to death.

"I think you will do fine by becoming his friend, Sakura-chan," said Hinata, her quiet voice barely audible over the bustle of the students in the hallway. "You were always good at that." And that was typical Hinata; she always made you feel good, but sometimes she was a little _too _timid. Hinata strayed from the rest when she spotted Neji, her twin brother. The other two girls split from the pack, as well, so they could make it on time to their next classes, leaving Sakura alone. She had a free period this period, however, and she was glad of it--it would give her some time to think alone in the library.

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**All right! that's chappie five, down and out...**

**I dunno if I'm gonna be able to dish out these chapters this fast from now on... it may not be every day, but prolly twice/three times a week instead.**

**And here's my special shout-out to my reviewers:**

_**reichtwix, Mareku, DrendeSalkash, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, biawutnow, queenbee12345, and OiToTheWorld.**_

**I love you guys! hope you enjoy this chapter... seeya next time!**


	6. Mayhem and Pale Eyes

**Heys guys!**

**Wow! I got three reviews for chapter five within **_**hours **_**of posting it! I'm sooo happy!**

**I just wanted to let everyone know that I do greatly appreciate when they spend a little extra time to leave a comment. It really means a lot to the writer... sniff**

**BTW, I'm very sorry about the delay... I know I usually update pretty quickly, and not having a new chapter in a few days can be frustrating (Trust me, I know.) With work, school, and whatnot, I'm just hard pressed for time to think about this story... I actually started this not knowing what I was going to do, so just bear with me and I'll do my worst! Er... best! **

**Okay, here's chapter six, guys!**

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_"Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun, SASUKE-KUN!"_

Uchiha Sasuke did not want fangirls. His name repeated over and over irritated him enough that he almost forbade his group of guy friends from ever saying it again. He sighed.

"Go away..." he groaned, massaging his temples.

He didn't want to deal with this; he was supposed to be cool, calm, collected. He wanted to stew in his own misery and hate his brother in peace.

Itachi... the name made him want to strangle something and thoroughly enjoy it. He was the reason his parents were dead, his childhood ruined. Itachi was the reason for the cold, twisted version of himself he became.

A different, more hesitant voice distracted him from his thoughts.

"Um, S-Sasuke-kun?"

Sakura stood before him, looking all the world like Hyuuga Hinata when approached by a stranger. Her eyes were downcast, and she fidgeted as she stood before her crush.

"..."

Sakura took his silence as an answer.

"Uh, I just wanted to let you know that we're going to the club on Saturday... just... a reminder, O.K.? It's the one on Kazekage Lane... you know, by the ramen place...?" **(A/N: What the hell is that place called again...?)**

Sasuke nodded in reply, and Sakura, now a bit more in tune with his moods, skittered away to leave him alone.

His friend, Kiba, looked on in interest.

"I think she really likes you, 'Chi," he said thoughtfully. Sasuke, as usual, did not reply, but the little frown that was perpetually glued to his face deepened a bit. Kiba's attention was drawn away when a certain pale-eyed, shy girl walked across the courtyard, surrounded by several friends.

Sasuke gave out a rare soft chuckle.

"Why don't you ever talk to that girl, Kiba?"

Kiba started, then looked away. "What girl, 'Chi?"

Sasuke shrugged, now back to being his moody self. The sound of the usual crowd of fangirls was putting him in a really foul mood.

"Kiiiiiiiba-kuuuuuuun..." Kiba groaned, recognizing the voice of his annoying, self-proclaimed 'friend'.

She was a freshman. She was also extremely blonde, hyper, and obsessive. She seemed to consider anyone who'd ever even looked at her for more than three seconds a 'friend', and she'd follow them everywhere and buy them random presents.

Her name was Hikaru Amita, or 'Amy' for short.

"Amy -chan wants to give you something." The blonde giggled, pulling out a large box. Kiba noted that the box seemed to wiggle strangely. _What the...?_

Amy plopped it into Kiba's waiting arms, watching him with big, baby blue eyes closely. Kiba held the box away from him as if it were nuclear bombs.

"Uhh... Amy...? Whatever's in there... is it... dangerous...?" Kiba was still holding the box away, a look of comical fear plastered on his face.

Amy giggled again, which annoyed Sasuke to no end. His scowl became impossibly more pronounced.

"No, silly! Open it! Open it!"

Kiba slowly peeled back the wrapping paper and ripped open the lid to the cardboard box. To both boys' general surprise, a tiny brown puppy popped out and climbed Kiba like a tree, eager to get out of his cardboard prison. Kiba grabbed it and held it in front of his face, an indecipherable look on his face. The puppy panted a bit, then licked Kiba's nose.

"His name's Akamaru..." Amy said cautiously, her happy demeanor seemingly dependent upon Kiba's reaction.

Kiba made no sign that he acknowledged her. He kept staring at the squirming puppy. "You'll do," he said after a long silence. Amy laughed and clapped her hands.

This sudden noise startled the puppy into action. He leapt out of Kiba's arms and jumped onto the nearest lunch table, scattering several lunch trays and their contents. The girls at the table screeched and screamed.

"THIS WAS A DESIGNER BLOUSE!!" one of them screamed; she was covered in bits of chicken and green beans.

But Akamaru didn't stop there; he ducked and wove underneath people's feet, causing them to fall over in an awkward domino. More food splattered to the floor and more screams were heard. One of the kids, encouraged by the sudden chaos, threw his mashed potatoes into in the direction of his friend, only to hit some unintended target.

This, of course, started what would be called the 'food fight of the year' by all of the students in second lunch at Konoha High. Food covered all the walls, almost every student, and, of course, all of the mean teachers.

Kiba would have agreed if he, along with Sasuke and Amy, weren't forced to clean up afterwards.

"It's your dog's fault," Tsunade-sensei had barked. "And you're gonna clean this up!"

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Sakura could not wait until Saturday. She'd been counting the days until she could go to this major party since last year, and now that Sasuke was going, she was ecstatic. The girls fussed over Neji's new outfit; he had tried shopping by himself and failed miserably. She stopped counting on her planner to see someone she recognized.

"Hey, Naruto," she said. He grinned and closed his eyes, looking like some kind of fox.

"Hey, Sakura-chan! I like your earrings today!"

Sakura smiled at the compliment.

"Come sit down, Naruto, you know you're welcome to..."

Naruto gave her a little half-smile and sat down. The girls around him immediately gave him all of their attention.

"Hey!"

"Hi."

The third reply did not come, for Hinata had gone into bug-eyed silence. She was staring at Naruto as if she'd never seen a boy before.

"Guys, this is the guy in my science class, Naruto," Sakura said. "Naruto, this is Neji--" she gestured towards the now very irritated boy-- "Ino, and Hinata." Hinata gave a little squeak and blushed, but didn't move from her position.

Naruto gave his little half-smile. "Hey!"

The girls proceeded to ask him various questions about him, varying from his favorite color to what he liked in a girl.

To the latter, he'd glanced at Sakura and blushed. "W-well, I like smart, pretty girls, I guess..." he'd said, but quickly changed the subject.

After they (mostly Ino) became bored with questioning Naruto, Ino brought up the party.

"Ooh! I can't wait to take you, Sakura! Of course, _I've _already been, but it's a blast! As long as you act mature..."

Sakura nodded, then her eyes widened as she realized something.

"Naruto! Your birthday's in October!"

Naruto blinked. "...Yeah..."

"So you're eighteen! You can come with us to my birthday party at the club!"

Naruto's heart skipped a beat. Sakura was inviting him somewhere? Voluntarily?!

He must have spaced out for a moment, because Sakura was suddenly waving her hand in his face.

"Hey! Naruto! You wanna go or not?" she asked impatiently.

"Oh! Uh..." Naruto felt his face grow warm. "O-of course, Sakura-chan! Where is it...?"

She told him all the details.

"Hey! That's by my favorite restaurant! I can't wait, Sakura-chan!" Naruto's entire body seemed to straighten up and suddenly go on bouncy mode. Sakura suppressed a silly giggle. Hinata made that same squeaking noise again.

"Seeya there! Oh and hey, bring whatever friends you want to bring, too..."

Naruto simply could not stop smiling.

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"Oh my God--" Kiba grunted, plunging his fist into his punching bag. He and a few other friends, including Shikamaru, Chouji, and Sasuke were hanging out at Kiba's house, currently listening to him gripe about Amy. "She has got to be the most annoying--" _punch _"person--" _punch, punch _"on the frickin' PLANET!" _punchety-punch punch._

Chouji looked a little fearful at his friend's anger, Sasuke unmoved. Shikamaru smirked.

"Seems you're not the only one with fangirls, 'Chi," Shikamaru said to Sasuke. Sasuke closed his eyes in answer.

"SHUT--" another violent punch-- "UP!!" the last punch sent the poor bag sailing; the wire connecting it to the ceiling had snapped. "GAH!"

Akamaru, who was recently taking a rather peaceful nap, now whined piteously and skittered away, his long brown tail between his legs.

"Awww, look, Ki, you scared away the cute li'l puppy," Shikamaru said with thinly veiled sarcasm.

The next string of curse words Kiba threw at the lazy teen made Chouji go pale and drop his bag of Lay's.

Shikamaru opened his mouth to throw another sarcastic comment at Kiba, but a sharp glance from Sasuke told him that it was best left alone.

Kiba suddenly looked towards the door as the bell sounded. His eyebrows furrowed.

"Who...?" he looked at the rest of the guys, but they all shrugged.

Kiba swung the door open to see Hyuuga Hinata standing there. He blinked a few times and had to swallow; she was dressed in a little white mini-skirt and a simple, sky-blue camisole, but she managed to look beautiful to him.

"Uhmm... hey," he said lamely.

"Amy-chan gave me your address," she said simply. "Sakura-chan wanted me to give this to Sasuke." She handed him a little folded letter. "I live close to here, so..." she suddenly looked a little uncomfortable, as if she didn't know what to do with herself.

"You... w-wanna come in?" Kiba asked, a little too quickly. He cursed inwardly at his tongue-tied-ness.

"Um... sure, but just for a minute..."

He stood out of her way to let her in, half-excited and half-terrified.

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**Slight cliffie! Yay... **

**or not.**

**Okay, I would like to thank:**

_**animeme, LonewolfBloodstorm, reichtwix, Mareku, DrendeSalkash, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, biawutnow, queenbee12345, **_**and**_** OiToTheWorld **_**for their wonderful reviews! Love ya guys!**

**Also, just wanted to make it clear; Amy's an OC, just kind of a filler character. Also, 'Chi' is Sasuke's nick name given to him by friends (Short for 'Uchiha', get it? lol)**

**'Til next chappie!**

**-Lady Keruri**


	7. Smash Queens, Jealousy, and Hotness

**Up to fifteen reviews! Yay!**

**Okies... So I'm posting this chapter on the SAME DAY as No. 6! yay!**

**I had this morning to finish chapter six, and I ripped this one out this evening. Amazing? Yes!**

**Here goes...**

**Oh yeah, I totally forgot the disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, Sasuke would get over himself, Naruto would get his girl, and Hinata would notice someone other than Naruto. And Gaara would own you all. Muahahaha!**

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"Oh, I'm sorry..." Hinata looked apologetic as the character across the screen flew out of view.

They were sitting on comfortable bean bag chairs around Kiba's enormous television screen, all except Sasuke playing Super Smash Bros. Melee. It was a general favorite for larger groups of people.

"For what, Hina?" Kiba asked, grinning. "Kicking our butts _again_?"

Shikamaru scowled, looking ready to take revenge; Chouji wiped the grease off of his controller from his potato chips.

Hinata had won every single match between them all--except Sasuke, who was known as the Smash King among the four of them. Her favorite character had been Samus Aran, a space bounty hunter who happened to be a tough woman. Shikamaru played as Luigi, Chouji, Pichu, and Kiba, Starfox.

Sasuke, who'd been watching the entire thing with no expression, suddenly took the controller out of Kiba's hands. He looked at Hinata.

"One-on-one, then?"

Hinata smiled a little and the boys were suddenly extremely attentive.

Sasuke chose his character: Zelda.

A little while later, she defeated him. But Sasuke was not done. He chose his next character: Ganondorf.

She beat him again.

Sasuke's brow twitched a little and he pulled out his biggest weapon: Young Link.

It was an extremely close match; the two characters would dodge each other at exact times and would barely lay a hit on one another. It was worthy of samurai; even Chouji abandoned his food to stare in awe at the perfectly matched fight.

Beads of sweat formed on Sasuke's forehead as Samus tried to grab Link but missed by a hair. Hinata looked like she was concentrating a little, but not to the extent Sasuke was. She had a semi-serious look on her face that made Kiba smile a little.

The battle took over an hour, but...

"Sorry, Sasuke-kun..."

Enormous cheers erupted through the room when the last character died; it seemed that Hinata had an affinity for video games. Her character had one life left with two hundred and fifty-six percent damage done to it, but she'd won. Shikamaru hugged her.

Sasuke jumped up, thoroughly annoyed, and actually jumped up and down in frustration. He lost! How could he lose!?

Hinata looked proud of herself, but a little sheepish when Sasuke stormed into the kitchen.

"All hail the Smash _Queen _!" Chouji and Shikamaru shouted. Kiba grinned at her, thoroughly impressed. Who knew Hinata could be a gamer?

All the boys were a little sad to see her leave, but she now was a part of the most sought-after group in Konoha high.

Kiba couldn't wait to have her back over.

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"You _what?!_"

Sakura and Ino had leaned in extremely closely to Hinata, mouths hanging open and eyes bulging.

"I w-was invited inside Kiba's... house..."

Sakura clapped her hands in glee.

"This means that we now have more connections to Sasuke!"

"And Sh-- um, I mean, the rest of the popular group," Ino said, blushing. The girls didn't catch her stumble, too busy fantasizing, but Neji raised his eyebrows at her.

"Who, Ino?" he asked quietly. She blushed a little more deeply.

Ino was saved from having to answer, however, when Naruto plopped down in his usual chair beside Sakura. He had a serious look on his face--at least, as serious as Uzumaki Naruto could muster.

"Hinata," he said abruptly, causing the shy girl to turn as red as Ino. "I need to talk to you." Her eyes were as wide as CDs. She nodded mutely. He stood up and led her outside.

The others watched them.

"What...?" Ino looked utterly surprised and confused. "He's only known her for... what, two days...? Is he asking her on a date or something...?"

The others shrugged and waited for Hinata to come back in to tell them.

Outside, Hinata felt like a spluttering wreck.

"Okay, Hinata, I need to tell you something... but you can't tell anyone, okay? Especially Sakura," he said, looking apprehensive. "You're her friend, so..."

Hinata, now utterly confused, nodded. _I need to stop doing that_, she thought to herself.

"So... I'm in love with Sakura."

Hinata blinked.

"And... I'd like to know what her favorite flowers are for her birthday," he finished, now looking very nervous.

Hinata felt a rush of jealousy, but she bit it back. It wasn't like she'd known him forever or anything...

"B-but," she said, "Sakura-chan likes Sasuke..."

She immediately regretted saying this, for Naruto seemed to droop and his eyes lost that little bit of sparkle they always seemed to have in them.

"Yeah... but I'm sorta banking on the fact that she'll realize he's a jerk and get over him," he said, and he sounded so hopeful that Hinata had to smile.

"She likes white Dendrobium orchids, Naruto-kun," she said. He smiled, hugged her, and ran away. That was one thing about Naruto; he never walked when he didn't have to.

Hinata decided that she didn't want Sakura to give up on Sasuke after all.

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"What am I gonna wear?! I have to wear something... something sharp, but not like I'm trying too hard..." The floor of his tiny apartment was coated in the layer of clothing he'd thrown out of his closet. Tonight was the night of the big party! He decided that he'd never felt so nervous. He sat on his bed and held his head in his hands.

"What am I gonna do...?"

His head finally shot up. "Temari! I gotta call her..."

When he had her on the line, she sounded like she was moving furniture. She was grunting and panting strangely.

"What is it, Naruto?" she asked, sounding thoroughly annoyed.

"Uh... Temari, what are you doing?" he asked after hearing her make more strange noises.

"Trying... to get... my pantyhose on," she said, huffing. Naruto raised his eyebrows, but decided to ignore her comment.

"Okay... I don't know what to--"

"Blue striped shirt, black pants, black shoes," she snapped, and hung up the phone. Naruto grinned and did as she directed. He checked himself in the mirror, ruffled his hair, and grabbed his keys and the orchids for Sakura off of his night table.

"I hope you're ready for me, Sakura," he said, brimming with confidence.

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Sakura felt absolutely beautiful, no--_sexy--_ in her outfit. she wore a little pink miniskirt that ruffled away from her body, a low-cut, white, backless top, white fishnet stockings, and pink pumps. She styled her hair so it looked like a pin-up girl from the fifties and applied a smoky black color to her eyes that made her irises gleam with a sultry, gray-green glow, and, to top it all off, her lips were colored Barbie pink--a crazy color that she knew only young girls could pull. It all went with her hair nicely.

Hinata wore a black, simple, innocent-but-not-quite dress that hit her mid-thigh along with black ballet flats and minimal makeup.

Ino, not to be outdone by Sakura, styled her hair in soft, long curls and wore brown makeup that brought out the icy blue of her eyes. She wore red lipstick, a black halter top, and a black miniskirt, along with sparkling black high-heeled wedges.

It was to Sakura's surprise that her mother helped her dress up.

"Don't tell your father, don't do anything stupid, and stay with Ino and Hinata," she'd said, winking. "And have fun. Call me if you're out later than one."

Sakura picked up her keys and sauntered to the front door.

"I hope you're ready for me, Sasuke..."

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Naruto waited at a table alone for Sakura. He'd ordered a few Cokes, not old enough to drink, and watched the front doors like a hawk.

"Hey, Naruto!"

Naruto jumped almost four inches out of his seat; Temari grinned lopsidedly at him, Kankuro and Gaara scowling murderously beside her.

"Hey, Temari-chan! You look great!" Naruto said, getting up to hug her. "Glad you came," he said to the two boys, who just glowered at him. Gaara and Kankuro looked no different than usual, Kankuro wearing his 'Master of Puppets' tee and 'Insane Clown Posse' wristband, Gaara in his goth garb. They sat next to him.

"There's the 'jerk squad'," Temari said, nose wrinkling, and pointed at the group of teens that were hanging out in the corner of the bar. Sasuke and the gang (minus Chouji, who was too young) stood like they normally do--arms crossed and leaning stylishly.

"Hey, who's that?" Naruto asked, pointing at an older guy with them. He was lean, average height, with dark, watery eyes and a short black haircut.

"That's Bill, the American guy who gets them drinks," Temari said bluntly.

"Isn't that... illegal?"

Temari sniffed. "Yeah, but he's so rich that the bartenders just turn a blind eye to it..."

But now Naruto wasn't listening. Three girls had just walked through the door, one of them particularly catching his eye... a certain pink-haired, drop-dead gorgeous girl...

Temari let out a little shriek and Kankuro yelled in pain as Naruto passed out and landed on Kankuro's foot.

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**All right! Sakura's looking hot! **

**I hope you like this chapter, it sort of... zapped into my brain and my fingers weren't fast enough for my taste.**

**Okies! Again, thanks to:**

_**animeme, LonewolfBloodstorm, reichtwix, Mareku, DrendeSalkash, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, biawutnow, queenbee12345, **_**and**_** OiToTheWorld **_**for their reviews!**

**'Til next time! **

**Love, Keruri-chan**


	8. At the Club

**I'm baaaaaack! **

**Okay, so here's yur next chapter!**

**This one was so much fun to write!**

**Oh yeah, and I don't own Naruto.**

**Love, Lady Keruri.**

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Sasuke couldn't breathe. His lungs felt like they were being crushed by iron weights and his heart jumped to his throat.

"Whoa... she's hot..." Kiba muttered, eyes glazed over as he stared. Sasuke felt that these words did not even begin to describe how Haruno Sakura looked, although that was not who Kiba was admiring.

She was... beautiful, ravishing, gorgeous. Her eyes dazzled him, her graceful saunter amazed him. He felt as if she was the last person he ever wanted to look at. She turned around, searching, and found him. She walked over gracefully, looking as confident as ever (besides the light blush that dusted her cheeks).

"Sasuke-kun..." she said, watching his expression, which hadn't changed since she walked in. "The dance floor opens and the DJ comes in at ten, so..." she hesitated. "Will you dance with me?"

"I don't dance," he said, and all of his breath came out in a rush, heart pounding rapidly.

Sakura's face seemed to lose a little light. "Oh... You mean you don't know how, or...?" she had to know: did he not dance with her because of her, or because he couldn't...?

Sasuke's face remained impassive. "Of course I know how, I just don't... with anybody," he snapped. Apparently Sakura had said the wrong thing.

She tried again.

"Would you and your friends like to sit with us?"

Now Sasuke looked annoyed. "No."

_Why did I just say that...?_ Sasuke's brain asked sarcastically.

Sakura's lower lip trembled. She straightened up. "All... All right, Sasuke." Her vision suddenly became blurred, and she realized that tears were forming. She made to turn and run, but--

"Sakura-chan?"

She saw yellow, blue and black, but that was about all the detail she could see. She rapidly blinked her eyes to be rid of her tears. "Naruto! I'm glad you made it... is it all right if we sit with you...?"

Sakura allowed the blonde to lead her away from Sasuke and his friends back to Ino, Hinata, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro.

Ino eyed her shrewdly when she plopped down in a chair next to Naruto. "He shot you down again." It wasn't a question.

Sakura sighed miserably. Naruto's hand twitched, as if he wanted to touch her or make a move towards her, but he didn't.

"So..." Ino said, arms crossed and looking utterly enraged. Hinata looked a bit frightened.

Naruto, wanting to save Sakura from having to relive her second sour encounter with Sasuke, exclaimed,

"Hey, guys! We haven't all been introduced! Neji's not here, but this is Temari, Gaara, and Kankuro, and guys, this is Sakura, Hinata, and Ino! Isn't that great...!"

Everyone muttered their hellos, and Temari and Ino promptly began chatting.

Sakura caught Naruto's eye. _Thank you, _she mouthed, and he smiled sincerely. Sakura spared a glance at Sasuke and caught him glaring at Naruto evilly.

_...That's odd..._

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_I am not jealous, I am not jealous, I am not jealous..._

_Right, _Sasuke's mind answered back. _She's beautiful and you know it._

_Doesn't mean she's not an annoying pest, _he half-snarled.

_She likes you even after you rejected her._

_Well, it seems like that blonde kid... what's-his-name... he's caught her eye now._

_No, she treats him like a friend. You know that already. She only really likes you._

_... Go away, you're annoying me._

_You say that to everyone._

_Shut up and leave!_

Sasuke watched Sakura take little sips from her drink as she cheered her friends on. Naruto and Gaara sat at the same table, Gaara looking detatched and Naruto gazing at Sakura.

Shikamaru was dancing with Hinata, Kiba with Ino, and Kankuro with Temari, albeit extremely reluctantly. The floor was full of other young couples cooing and kissing and swinging each other around under the flashing disco lights. The DJ's voice boomed over a loudspeaker occasionally, encouraging people to come up and dance.

Shikamaru and Kiba swapped partners, Shikamaru winking at Kiba suggestively. Kiba looked dumbstruck. Shikamaru suddenly noticed who he was dancing with and looked a little shocked himself.

Naruto suddenly bent and said something in Sakura's ear. She brightened up, glanced in Sasuke's direction, and nodded, smiling. Naruto took her hand and dragged her up onto the dance floor.

Sasuke was surprised to see that Naruto was naturally inclined to dancing; he picked up rhythm well and seemed to know dancing for couples. Sasuke noticed that Temari and Kankuro had stopped dancing to watch them, Temari looking anxious.

Sasuke smirked. So that girl had taught him a few dance moves, then.

After five or six songs (and three 'Sex on the Beaches' later, thanks to Bill), Naruto and Sakura headed back to the table and ordered waters, Sakura pleasantly flushed. Naruto looked as if he couldn't get any happier. He leaned over again and said something else to Sakura. She smiled and giggled. Sasuke's eyes narrowed. Naruto put his hand out and brushed hair out of her face, then snatched his hand back shamefacedly. Sakura's eyes seemed to sparkle.

"That's it!" Sasuke growled, but the bar was so noisy that he wasn't heard. He laid down the money for his tab and stormed out of the bar. Bill said something to him, but he ignored it.

_I am jealous..._

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Sakura didn't notice until hours later that the person she came for was not there anymore. Naruto was... well, he made her forget what she was worried about.

All those worries came back, however, when she noticed Sasuke was, indeed, missing.

"S-Sasuke...?"

Naruto's smile dropped when she saw her look around worriedly.

"What is it, Sakura-chan?" he asked, the ruddy color in his cheeks receding.

"Sasuke is missing..."

Kiba plopped into a chair beside her, Hinata opposite him.

"Uchiha just runs off like that sometimes," Kiba said, overhearing Sakura's last comment. Sakura's happy balloon now seemed completely deflated.

"Oh..."

Naruto felt a little hurt at first that she'd rather have Sasuke with her than him, but then his heart broke a little when he saw her expression.

"Well, maybe he doesn't like loud places," Naruto reasoned. "He seems like the quiet type..."

Sakura brightened.

"So maybe he was nervous with all of these people here! I should take him somewhere quieter... Thanks Naruto!"

Naruto grinned. "Just trying to help..."

Sakura smiled back, but she also noticed that his eyes didn't seem to have that little light in them that they always did when he smiled at her.

"Well... I guess we should... Omigosh!" Sakura exclaimed, eyes widening when she looked up at the dance floor.

Naruto followed the line of her gaze and looked as well.

Shikamaru and Ino were locked in a tangle of limbs, their lips pressed against each other in a steamy kiss. Sakura immediately imagined herself and Sasuke doing the same thing and her mouth watered.

"SHIKAMARU! What are you doing?!" Kiba yelled, making Hinata jump.

But Shikamaru was somewhere else. Their hands began roaming; the people around them were wolf-whistling--

"Wha--?" Ino was dragged off of the boy by Sakura, who was shaking her head like a lion getting rid of flies. What she was really doing was trying to rid herself of the dirty thoughts clouding her mind. "Sakura! Uh... I, um..."

"Just... I don't wanna hear it, okay?" Sakura was really grumpy now; her Sasuke had left her and now her friend was making out when she wanted to do the same thing with _her _crush. "Let's just go..." Sakura grabbed Hinata, who squeaked, and headed towards the door.

"Wait! Sakura-chan... I got you something... wait right there!" Naruto was in her face, making her even more cranky, steering her back to her chair. She obliged and flopped down irritably. Ino looked rather sheepish as Shikamaru slipped her a little sheet of paper on the way out of the bar.

Naruto reappeared, smiling.

"Happy birthday, Sakura-chan..." and he held out the orchids. Sakura's mouth dropped as she took the flowers and carefully draped them over her arm.

"How did you...? What...?" Sakura was, to say the least, surprised. She also felt a little guilty at herself for being annoyed by him.

"You like it?" Naruto asked, looking like a little puppy waiting to be praised.

Sakura looked up at him, smiling. She stood up and flung her arms around his neck. "They're beautiful... this is the best present ever!" She let go and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

Naruto's face felt as if it were on fire; the emotions he felt were all swirling in tight coils somewhere in his stomach. "I... I--Uh, h-happy birthday..."

Ino and Hinata looked around nervously and stood up, edging towards the door. "We'd better go..." Ino said hesitantly. Sakura nodded and made to follow them.

Naruto grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"Sakura-chan... you look beautiful tonight."

And her eyes lit up again because of him.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

**Thanks to:**

_**Momochikd, full-metal-souske, animeme, LonewolfBloodstorm, reichtwix, Mareku, DrendeSalkash, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, biawutnow, queenbee12345, **_**and**_** OiToTheWorld **_**for their reviews! **

**Also, thank you to:**

_**xXxfallenxsakuraxXx, bm631, Momochikd, SomeDude121489, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, NaruxSaku2189, hpchick01, meluvnaruto **_**for favoriting my story!**

**'Til next time...**

**Lady Keruri**


	9. Aluminum's Self Pity

**Hi! **

**I'm so glad I got so many reviews in such a short amount of time! It makes me want to type so much faster… /sigh**

**Okay, now for a really excellent chapter (I hope)…**

**Oh yeah, I don't own **_**Naruto.**_

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Sakura started the car, ditching her pink heels and flexing her feet in relief. Ino and Hinata stared out of the window, apparently extremely preoccupied with their own thoughts. Sakura backed out and drove out of the bar.

As she drove home, concentrating hard (she was slightly uncomfortable with driving, still), she heard the sound of sirens. She pulled to the right and allowed the ambulance to pass._ I hope that whoever it is is all right, _she thought fervently. She hated to see people hurt.

She kept driving and noticed that the ambulance had stopped at the scene of a messy car crash. Curious, she craned her head to see who it was.

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"Sakura, Sakura, bo Bakura, fee fie mo Makura, Saaakura," Naruto sang as he slid on his pajamas. It had to have been the best night ever. For once, he didn't feel so alone in his little apartment.

"She is sooo wooonderful, and sooo cuuute, and so niiiice, and so... so cooool..." he continued. That was one thing about living alone; you could act as stupid as you wanted and it didn't matter.

He jumped into bed via 'flying Sambini' and grabbed his TV flipper, too excited to be sleepy. He turned it on and started to flip to the only cartoon channel he had. But as he passed the Konoha News channel, a familiar face caught his eye.

_Isn't that... Sasuke...?_

He frowned for a moment until something hit him--Sasuke wasn't moving. He was being carried onto a stretcher in front of a car that now resembled a crushed aluminum can. Sakura came on screen, and her face was as white as a sheet.

The news reporter turned to her.

"Miss, did you know the victim? Could you tell us what happened?"

Sakura did not move. "Sasuke..."

Naruto could read the word on her lips. Ino and Hinata were behind her, looking terribly frightened. Naruto suddenly realized that he recognized the street...

He turned off the television, quickly got dressed, and drove to where his Sakura was.

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Sasuke opened his eyes and closed them again quickly because it hurt. He realized that he was lying on his back...

_But I don't sleep on my back..._ he thought groggily.

He twitched his fingers and stopped quickly--that hurt, as well.

His nerves fluxed into action all at once, and his limbs felt as if they were on fire. He almost had to bite his tongue to keep himself from crying out. He opened his eyes--this time, more slowly.

He was met with a white ceiling and a sterile-smelling room. He groaned softly.

"Sasuke-kun?"

Sakura's face suddenly hovered over him, looking worried. She still had on her makeup from the party, but it was smeared all the way down to her chin. He wasn't out long, then.

_Wait... why is she here...?_

"Your friends are coming soon... you had a bad accident..." Sakura said, her face contorted with some unknown mix of emotions.

"Nnn..."

" 'S he okay?" asked a slightly rough voice, not yet completely touched by puberty. Sasuke knew that voice... but his brain refused to connect thoughts any faster than the Internet on dial-up.

"I think so, Naruto..."

Oh yeah, that irritating blonde kid.

"Hey Uchiha, can you talk?"

Sasuke licked his dry lips. "Yeah..." he said softly. He normally would have said 'screw you', but that seemed like it was too hard to say.

Kiba, Shikamaru, and Chouji decided to burst in at that moment, followed by a large, flustered-looking nurse.

" 'Chi! Izzy okay?!" Kiba asked, eyes wild. Sakura nodded.

"Out! OUT! All of you, out!" the nurse screeched. Apparenly there were only allowed to be two visitors at a time.

"He's our friend," Chouji said pitifully.

"We're not leaving," Shikamaru said coldly. The nurse looked cowed at his expression. She huffed and left.

Ino and Hinata entered timidly.

"Sakura-chan?" Hinata's quiet voice piped up. Sakura jumped. "Sakura-chan... are _you _okay?"

Sakura let out a breath she did not know she'd been saving. "Yeah... I guess so..."

Naruto rubbed her shoulder soothingly, but she gently pulled away.

"If... if you guys don't mind... could I... be alone w-with Sasuke-kun for a moment?" Sakura asked shakily. Everyone filed out, each one murmuring something to Sasuke on the way out the door.

The door clicked as the last person left.

"Sasuke, do you feel all right enough to talk?" Sakura asked after a brief silence.

"Not r-really..." Sasuke sighed, wincing. His ribs were broken. Great.

Sakura sighed. "I guess I'll talk... Sasuke, I guess it's obvious that I really like you."

Sasuke noted the disuse of '-kun' at the end of his name.

"I... dressed up for you... I leave you alone when you want me to... I try to be friendly... " she said softly. "I just wanted to tell you, in case there was still guesswork to be done."

She stood up to leave.

"Stay..."

Sakura whipped around.

"What?" she asked softly.

"Stay..." Sasuke whispered.

She did.

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Hinata was confused.

Sakura's happiness teetered precariously with each breath Sasuke breathed, and after the accident she'd been downright depressed.

She still liked Naruto, but he loved Sakura, who in turn liked Sasuke. But she'd had so much fun with Kiba... and now Ino and Shikamaru were seeing each other...

On top of that, Gaara the Goth actually hung out with her friends, as well as Kankuro and Temari.

Her brain wanted to explode.

Her timid nature told her to bottle it in, to keep it tucked away in some unknown corner of her mind. She was the ear for people to talk to, the comforter. But she was so unstable herself that she wanted to tell them all to go away.

She didn't.

She trudged to the library at lunchtime--Sakura took another day off of school to visit Sasuke and Ino was now very attatched to Shikamaru. She felt like a third wheel that had no use.

Come to think of it, she always felt that way; pushed aside, trodden on, used, ignored. It almost made her angry.

But it didn't.

It made her feel sad.

She stood in the fantasy section in the far corner, looking but not seeing, feeling left out and unwanted.

_I shouldn't be thinking about myself right now, _she thought savagely. But when did she think about herself?

Unwanted tears slipped from her pale eyes and down her cheeks. She touched them with her fingers, surprised.

"Hey..."

A familiar voice made her look up to see Kiba.

"Kiba-kun... h-how's Akamaru...?" she asked timidly, quickly putting on a happy face.

"Huh...? Oh, fine... Were you crying, Hinata-chan?" he asked worriedly, and his face was so sincere that it took all she had not to start again.

"N-n--" She finally broke and began to cry silently, her throat too constricted to speak. Kiba immediately looked uncomfortable.

He'd never had to comfort a crying girl before, and here was his crush sobbing like her best friend had just died. He crept forward a little and patted her shoulder awkwardly.

She leaned forward, which put the side of her face on his chest, and she held him for support.

"Shhh... please don't cry..." he said, feeling like crying himself. "I hate it when girls cry..."_ Especially you._

She stopped after about three minutes.

"S-sorry... I'm just... worried, that's all..." she stammered, pulling away. "I didn't mean... I..."

" 'Sok, Hina," Kiba said, a melancholy smile gracing his face. "Everybody needs somebody, y'know?"

Hinata allowed herself a watery smile.

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**Ooooooh... a serious chapter... wonder what's next...? Bwahahahaha/crosses arms across chest (Bleach reference anyone...? No...? nevermind...)**

**Thanks to**

****

ManiMan, OnlyTimeWillTell, Flying Fox Of Snowy Mountain, Vengeful Beast, demons and angels, Momochikd, full-metal-souske, animeme, LonewolfBloodstorm, reichtwix, Mareku, DrendeSalkash, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, biawutnow, queenbee12345, and_ OiToTheWorld _for their reviews! 

Also, thank you to:

sasuke plushi, Vengeful Beast, ManiMan, Cloud Advent, GFOX2113, TheUnrealInsomniac, biawutnow, xXxfallenxsakuraxXx, bm631, Momochikd, SomeDude121489, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, NaruxSaku2189, hpchick01, and meluvnaruto for favoriting my story! 


	10. Muddled

**Hey!**

**I'm sorry I haven't updated for a little while... I got writer's block and I have been partying (Halloween! The day when it's okay to dress like a hooker as long as you add ears and a tail!).**

**I need ideas people! HELP!**

**Also, this IS a Naru/Saku fanfic! There will be fluff between Sasu/Saku, but that is until Sakura pulls her head out of her butt. So...**

**No worries!**

**Love, Lady Keruri Who Doesn't Own Naruto But Wishes She Could**

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He wanted so badly to tell her... to tell Sakura how he felt about her... he was crazy for her...

But he couldn't. He had to let her have her own happiness, and, right now, she was so confused and broken up about Sasuke's accident and him tugging her emotion every which way... she couldn't handle a love confession. _She'd probably explode, _he thought, grimacing.

He walked her to the hospital every day. He'd hug her, tell her everything was okay, smile, and let her go. And it took a little piece of his heart every time.

He tapped his pencil impatiently in biology, again sitting alone. Sakura and Sasuke were both gone. He sighed miserably.

"Hey," said a deep, quiet voice in front of him. He looked up. "You okay, Uzumaki? You look down..." Jiraiya-sensei said, worry creasing his brow.

"...I guess I will be, eventually," Naruto muttered, bottom lip quivering. Jiraiya looked alarmed.

"Do you need to go to guidance or something...?"

Naruto glared at him.

Jiraiya held his hands up in defense. "Okay, okay, just asking... I'll leave you alone..."

Naruto snapped the pencil he was holding too hard.

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Shikamaru's tongue slid past her lips and she let out a little, strangled noise. She wove her fingers through his hair and pressed her mouth against his harder.

He ripped his mouth away and laid little kisses on her jawline and trailed them down to her throat, where he felt her fluttering pulse under his hot mouth.

"Shika..." Ino murmured, eyes glazing. He pulled up to nibble her earlobe, which sent jolts of electricity down her spine.

She snarled and pinned him against the back of the couch, her knee holding him in place. It was his turn to moan. She slid her hands up his shirt, making him tremble violently.

"Wait... no, stop... _stop!_" Shikamaru said, pushing her away and jumping up. He held his head in his hands. "Whoa..."

"What's wrong... Shika-kun?" Ino purred, words slurred like someone just awakening from a deep slumber.

Shikamaru held out his hands; they were shaking. He'd never felt like this before--he'd made out with plenty of girls, but none of them turned him on this quickly, or made him feel so... helpless...

"I... just... whoa..."

Ino smirked. She stood in front of him and traced a finger lazily up his chest until she grabbed his collar and wrenched him downwards for another searing kiss.

His body stiffened before it melted; his hands automatically went to her hips and dragged her closer. She grinned into the kiss.

"You like that... Shika?" she whispered, her breath playing across his lips.

"Y--" she cut him off with another forceful kiss.

"You didn't answer me," she said after kissing him.

"Wh--" she stopped him again, this time sliding her hands under his shirt and tracing her fingers along his belt line.

"Say my name," she whispered after her interruption. Shikamaru, eyes feral, grabbed her and kissed her again.

"Ino..."

She smirked again and slammed him onto the couch.

Shikamaru decided it might not be so bad to feel helpless after all.

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Kiba lay on his back, enjoying the comfortable pillows and blankets and the feeling that you get once you realize it's a weekend. He'd been like this for a while, mulling over the little facts going around in circles in his head.

College, Hinata, Sasuke, Ino and Shikamaru, college, Hinata, Hinata...

_Hinata._

He loved her. He found out when he'd held her and comforted her, when she was vulnerable and yet so strong to him...

She'd also confided in him that day that she secretly liked Naruto. That stupid scruffy blonde kid.

Wasn't there something his mother had told him about the blonde, so many years ago? Wasn't he supposed to be afraid of him, be wary of him, avoid him, or something?

Well, mission accomplished: he now hated him.

It was the strength of his newly discovered feelings for Hinata that made him feel such strong hatred for the blonde nerd.

But then he felt guilty for that hatred; it wasn't Naruto's fault that Hinata liked him. Besides, Naruto was in love with Sakura.

It was obvious.

Stupid high school drama.

Akamaru wuffed softly and clambered clumsily onto Kiba's chest. He licked his master's cheek once, did a little circle, and flopped down, falling asleep minutes later.

Kiba stroked the fluffy fur mindlessly and drifted off into an uneasy sleep full of lavender eyes and blonde, fanged monsters.

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The hot water streamed down Sakura's back as tears streamed down her face. It was a general rule that when she was stressed out or under pressure, she took her alone time in the shower to let it all out.

Mrs. Haruno knew this.

"Sakura, honey," she murmured, stroking her daughter's back as she lay on her bed in her bathrobe. "Is there anything you want to talk about...? I know you're worried about that boy in the hospital..."

Sakura sighed. "It's not just-- I don't really feel like talking about it, Mom."

Mrs. Haruno rocked back on her heels, a little surprised. "Well... all right, honey... feel better..." and she closed the door with a soft click.

Sakura got up and slowly pulled on her most comfortable clothing. She was running a comb through her hair in front of her vanity mirror when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," she yelled in a resigned voice. She opened the door.

"Hey, Sakura-chan," said Naruto, wringing his hands. "Hinata told me that you lived a few blocks away from my apartment, so..."

"Come on in," Sakura said, not bothering to smile like she usually did. She was too tired.

"Who is it?" called Mrs. Haruno's voice.

"Just a friend of mine," Sakura said.

She led Naruto to the living room and flopped on the couch, leaning her head back and closing her eyes.

"You okay?" Naruto asked softly, eyes worried.

Sakura looked at him carefully, then finally decided that she could trust him. "No."

Naruto didn't say anything, but suddenly reached forward and pulled Sakura into a warm hug. He didn't let go. Sakura didn't know if she wanted him to.

It was... nice, in a word, to be hugged like this. Sakura decided that she liked the fact that he didn't say anything; he just held on and let her choose when she wanted to let go.

The tears flowed fast and hard, and then suddenly her body was shaking violently with sobs. Small sounds were coming out through her gritted teeth, and then louder wails sounded. Naruto drew small circles on her back and held her more tightly.

Sakura didn't stop for several minutes, and Naruto stayed. When her sobs finally reduced to small hiccups, she let go.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun," she whispered. Naruto's eyes shone with his own tears.

"Anytime," he said.

Mrs. Haruno watched the scene from around the corner, smiling sadly. So Sakura had found a friend who really cared... in a boy who secretly housed a demon.

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**Oooh... cliffie!**

**Now, did she mean that... metaphorically, or literally! Ya don't know, do ya?**

**Muahahahahaaaaaaaaa!**

**Okies, thank you to:**

_**Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet, sasuke plushie, Krymsom,**__** ManiMan, OnlyTimeWillTell, Flying Fox Of Snowy Mountain, Vengeful Beast, demons and angels, Momochikd, full-metal-souske, animeme, LonewolfBloodstorm, reichtwix, Mareku, DrendeSalkash, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, biawutnow, queenbee12345, **_**and**_** OiToTheWorld **_**for their reviews! **

**Also, thank you to:**

_**sasuke plushie, Vengeful Beast, ManiMan, Cloud Advent, GFOX2113, TheUnrealInsomniac, biawutnow, xXxfallenxsakuraxXx, bm631, Momochikd, SomeDude121489, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, NaruxSaku2189, hpchick01, and meluvnaruto **_**for favoriting my story!**


	11. Outtie

**Wheee! Hi!**

**So, the whole demon thing... you may not see it again for awhile! Hahahaaaaaaaa! You have to waiiit!**

**Ahem.**

**As I went back and re-read the story for ideas, I noticed a few people that haven't gotten much attention... **

**so this chappie is devoted to the dork of all dorks...**

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"Rock Lee," said an overly dramatic voice at the head of the classroom.

"Gai-sensei," Lee said emotionally.

Temari rolled her eyes, Kankuro groaned, and Gaara looked indifferent (as usual).

"I'm afraid that Uzumaki Naruto will not be back until tomorrow... so for now... YOU HAVE THE HIGHEST GRADE IN MATH!"

_Ah... _thought Temari. _So Naruto's a math geek._

It was common knowledge that Lee and Gai had a... strange... relationship. Gai's hair was the same (or rather, Lee's was the same) bowl cut that Lee had, and both of them were melodramatic about everything. It made the students gag.

Over in the corner, Neji blatantly ignored them and did his work, eager to beat out the stupid, goofy nerdy kids. Shikamaru slumped in the front seat.

"I wish I had Kakashi-sensei for math instead of this loser," Shikamaru grumbled. "He doesn't make the students do any work..."

Rock Lee was bowing and crying at the front of the class, obviously overwhelmed.

"I'm so proud of you, Lee! We have shown my childhood rival whose students are best!" Gai cried.

"Oh, Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

Gaara's scowl was practically murderous as the two hugged.

Lee was not your average dork. He was stubborn, resilient, polite (if overly so), and would never give up in whatever he did. However, the funky outfits, the obsessive studying, and his melodramatic nature were extremely unnerving at times.

He also didn't have friends. Unless you counted Gai.

"Embrace the power of youth!" Gai shouted, voice thick with unladen tears.

A timid knock on the classroom door was heard.

"Go... go forth and answer the knock of oppurtunity!" Gai said to Lee, and Lee obliged, wiping his tears as he did so.

"Ah... Is Hyuuga Neji in this class?" asked a very uncomfortable-looking girl. She wore her hair up in little buns, making her look like a cute Minnie Mouse.

"Yes, our tennis prodigy is indeed here," Lee said seriously. The girl looked at him as if he were crazy (which wouldn't be too far from the truth.)

"Uh... Miss Browning wants to see him about a scholarship interview..."

Lee disappeared from the doorway and came back with the pale-eyed boy in tow. The girl blushed when she saw Neji; he wasn't exactly ugly.

Neji sighed and shuffled out of the door.

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"You should be out of here soon, Mr. Uchiha," the doctor said, patting Sasuke's head. He grimaced. "And here's a prescription for pain meds." The doctor ripped off a piece of prescription paper and handed it to him. "Call if you need help... and drive home carefully," he said with false cheerfulness.

Sasuke's eye twitched.

He got dressed and pulled out his cell phone.

"Shikamaru," he grumbled. "I need to be picked up from the hospital."

"Oh... so you're out now...? Couldn't you ask Kiba... oh, fine, I'll pick you up..." came Shikamaru's voice, muttering something with the word 'troublesome' in it. Sasuke hung up with a light click of the flip phone.

He pulled on his black, thin sweatshirt and scuffed out of the little room.

Moments later, Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura stepped into the front of the hospital and made their way to the front desk to ask for visitor passes. The nurse decided that she was going to give them a hard time.

"Ma'am, I don't see where you are related to this... ah, Mr. Uchiha..."

"We're not, jiji! We're his friends!" Naruto growled. Sakura bopped him on the head and glared.

Naruto, cowed, rubbed his head and pouted.

"Uh, sorry about that..." Sakura said sheepishly. "_Be polite, baka, or we won't get what we want from her! _"

Turning back to the lady, she smiled sweetly, batting her eyelashes. "Ma'am, we haven't had a problem so far with visitatio--"

"OI! TEME!" Naruto's voice rang through the hall, causing everyone to stare. Sakura giggled nervously. Naruto ran over to none other than Uchiha Sasuke and gave him a bone-cracking hug. "You're out of the bed!"

Sasuke let out a small, un Sasuke-ish squeak when he found that he couldn't breathe.

"Dobe, you're squashing-- my recently broken ribs..."

Naruto let go and let Sakura walk forward. Naruto couldn't wait to see her face when she greeted Sasuke fully healed; even though Naruto was insanely jealous of Sasuke, he loved to see Sakura's face light up.

This didn't happen, however.

"Why didn't you call me when you found out that you were allowed out of the hospital?" she asked, voice betraying her slight hurt.

"Do I have to call _you _personally every time something happens to me, Sakura?" Sasuke retorted. Sakura looked stung.

"N-no--"

"My ride is here," Sasuke said, cutting her off. "So I won't be needing you around anymore."

Naruto stepped forward. "Hey, teme, she was here every single day to check on you! Don't be rude to her," he said, frowning.

Sasuke met Naruto's eyes with indifference. "I never asked her to come," he said coldly.

Sakura made a sudden movement. "B-but what about when you said..."

She was cut off when Sasuke shot a quick glare at her. He walked past them and out of the door.

There was a brief, awkward silence between Naruto and Sakura, broken only by the bustling of nurses and visitors coming through the hospital entrance.

"Uh, well... maybe he's just..." Naruto stuttered, trying to come up with something to make Sakura feel better.

"No," Sakura said firmly, eyes sparkling. "He's not anything. He... thinks-- that I'm just some annoying girl... like all the others..." two tiny tears dropped down her cheeks.

"Sakura-chan! Don't say that... you're not annoying... and you're--well--" Naruto struggled to find a word to describe her radiance, but couldn't; he'd never been overly eloquent. "You're Sakura... you aren't like the others..." Naruto shook the sleeve of his jacket over his hand and used it to wipe her tears. "Sasuke's a jerk! I mean, sometimes he's... okay, I guess... but if he can't see that you're..." Naruto hesitated.

Sakura's brow furrowed, her eyes still slightly moist. "See that I'm what?"

Naruto's face turned slightly pink. "Well, you're smart, and you're pretty, and you're nice and fun and..." he stopped, catching the look on Sakura's face.

Her bottom lip trembled and she smiled wanly. "You really think so, Naruto-kun?" she asked self-consciously.

"Well, of course! I mean..."

Sakura's smile disappeared to be replaced with a more fierce look. "Then I'll have to make him see that! He can't ignore me forever..."

It was Naruto's turn to look confused. "What do you...?"

"I will get Sasuke to go on at least one date with me! He'll see... "

Naruto's heart felt as if it was suddenly pierced by a needle of ice. Of course. She was Sakura--she wouldn't just give up on what she wanted. It was a trait that was endearing, yet it broke his heart because the person she wanted wasn't him.

"Yeah... " he said with false enthusiasm.

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Neji didn't want to be here.

The guidance counselor set her thin mouth in a straight line as she held his paperwork in front of her.

"A's and B's," she said distastefully, as if the grades were something disgusting. "A 3.56 average. No college would even look twice at you."

Neji's expression didn't change. He simply looked bored.

This irked the counselor farther.

"Don't you understand?! With these grades--"

"I'm going on a sports scholarship," Neji said evenly, standing up. "And I don't feel like discussing my future at the moment." He threw his book bag over a shoulder and left the room, leaving the counselor speechless and white with indignance.

The girl with Minnie Mouse hair leaned against the doorway outside of the office, smirking at the boy. _He's interesting, _she thought.

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"So..."

Sasuke sat, arms crossed and looking out of the window. A glance was the only way he acknowledged that Kiba had said anything.

They were in Kiba's truck, on the way to the school. Kiba was driving and Sasuke was in the passenger's seat. Sasuke's car was too wrecked to be driven, so he had to bum rides off of his friends (much to his chagrin) until he could afford another car.

"You made that pink-haired girl cry again yesterday," Kiba stated bluntly, watching his friend's reaction closely.

Sasuke didn't look at him, but shrugged a shoulder noncommittally.

"She was annoying me," he answered. Kiba blinked.

"She was annoying you." Kiba couldn't help but feel a little angry for the girl that had visited his best friend in the hospital every day, even when the guys couldn't always be there.

Sasuke hesitated a moment, which didn't go unnoticed by Kiba. "Hn."

Kiba's hands gripped the steering wheel a little harder. He glanced at his friend again and was taken aback by the serene expression gracing his face.

"Do you like her?"

The question surprised Sasuke enough to turn and look at Kiba fully.

"She's... pretty, I guess... and she's..." Sasuke murmured after a pause. He stopped. "Just... nevermind." He turned and looked back out of the window.

Kiba decided not to bring it up again anytime soon.

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**Arrgh! Damn writer's block...**

**I've got to kick my brain into gear...**

**I promise I'll upload soon, peeps!**

**Thanks to:**

_**sasuke plushie, Lexana Fable, Kaitlyn Hatake, Flashing Silver, Tori Kay, WorldsGreatestMaLo, ilikecheese56, MiseryluvsDeath aka Fidele, Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet, Krymsom,**__** ManiMan, OnlyTimeWillTell, Flying Fox Of Snowy Mountain, Vengeful Beast, demons and angels, Momochikd, full-metal-souske, animeme, LonewolfBloodstorm, reichtwix, Mareku, DrendeSalkash, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, biawutnow, queenbee12345, **_**and**_** OiToTheWorld **_**for their reviews! **

**Also, thanks to:**

_**sasuke plushie, alucard 24, Lexana Fable, Kaitlyn Hatake, crash and burnn, WorldsGreatestMaLo, ilikecheese56, Tori Kay, random-randomize, Vengeful Beast, ManiMan, Cloud Advent, GFOX2113, TheUnrealInsomniac, biawutnow, xXxfallenxsakuraxXx, bm631, Momochikd, SomeDude121489, Shintenshin no Jutsu, AnimeGirl1000, NaruxSaku2189, hpchick01, and meluvnaruto **_**for favoriting my story!**

**By the way, if I forget to mention you, just say so in a review...**

**Luvs ya!**


	12. Chapter 13

Okay, so you guys probably aren't going to be happy with me

**Okay, so you guys probably aren't going to be happy with me. I'm discontinuing the writing of THIS version of 'What You Don't Realize'. However, after re reading it, I have decided to edit, rewrite, and add on to the story. **

**I hope you don't kill me…**


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